Spence was set to return after he was suspended for three games in January for violating an undisclosed Big Ten rule. The university did not say in Friday's release if the ruling for the Kent State game had anything to do with Spence's previous penalty.

The university says ''Ohio State and the Spence family will continue to work with the Big Ten until there is final resolution to this matter.''

Spence, a 6-foot-3, 252-pound junior, had eight sacks and 52 tackles last year.

The No. 22 Buckeyes split their first two games of the season without Spence, losing 35-21 to Virginia Tech last Saturday.